Masquerade
by My Lady Catherine
Summary: Kathryn was an icon heartbreaker who had good sex. And that is what Annette wanted to be.' Way AU, but interesting, I hope. Please read and review.


**Disclaimer**: I do not own CI, or the characters.

Nor can I say that I even obsess over it enough to write a fic out of it. This came out of _nowhere_. Well, actually, most of the first paragraph is Katie's. Valmontmerteuil. She wrote it once, handed it to me after math class, and I am pretty sure she promptly forgot about it. Although you really can't take my word on that because I am not inside her head.

Please review; I want to know if this is any good before I even finish the next chapter. I am new at the CI thing (K/S all the way, don't get me wrong) so don't be _too _brutal. Some, but not too much, you know?

So, here goes!

_Annette,_

_I'm just going to get right into it. You can't love someone if you don't understand him. To truly be in love with a person, you have to know their good side and their bad side. People often fall in love with an idea. That's what we were, Annette. An idea. You loved the idea of my god side, but in all honesty, that side didn't even exist, or if it did, it wasn't the major part of me. I was, and am, a bad person. But I didn't want you to know that because for some odd reason, around you I was ashamed. I was ashamed to be myself because you weren't like that. Around everyone else, all me conquests, everyone in my life, I could comfort my self with the fact that they were bad too. Everyone had a dark side. Then I met you. And it seemed that if you ever were bad, it wasn't often, or you hid it well. I can't truly love someone like that. So this is my good bye. Goodbye. _

_Sincerely, _

_Sebastian Valmont_

Annette looked at the letter with dry eyes. She shook her head. What was he thinking? Love him? Whoever does love him is in for a real roller coaster. She had just wanted an object to crave. She had wanted a person who she could trash that entire article with. Giving into him was like giving into a dream, one she had been forced to live in because of—who else—oppressive parents. But now that she was free, she was tempted to see how many guys would fall for the innocent act. Annette grinned. She'd heard of Kathryn's reputation. Annette hoped to surpass it. But not yet. First she had to find out what made Annette so attractive. What was it that she did that drew the men like moths to a light? How did she manage to keep them coming? This was a mystery Annette hoped to solve within the next couple of weeks. But without Sebastian as an excuse to get near her, it would be more difficult.

One may wonder how Annette knew about Kathryn's secret side. Obviously, that side was a secret, so how could she know? Annette was an amazing judge of character. She knew Sebastian would be trouble, and that he would be a difficult one to snag. She didn't see through Kathryn at first, but after a lot of research and a few tips from some friends and otherwise, she had it. Kathryn was an icon heartbreaker who had good sex. And that is what Annette wanted to be.

Sitting at her desk, Annette opened a very important notebook, and read the first page over again. She read one part to herself as if reading her favorite part of a fairy tale:

"_Kathryn looks like a goddess today. When she came out of the coffee shop, her hair was floating around her face like an angel's might. (Note to self: buy a new conditioner. One that adds more bounce, perhaps) She looked up, and I almost thought she saw me. But she turned back to return to school. She walked down the street with a confident, yet sexy air. How does she do that?"_

Of course she had bought that conditioner, but it just wasn't the same. And she didn't understand what Kathryn saw in those iced mocha's, but Annette bought one everyday, just to get used to the taste.

She knew that she couldn't give up now, not when she had become such a good student. Her learning days weren't over yet. So, actress at heart, Annette composed a return letter, in the form of an email.

_Dear Sebastian,_

_I understand, I think. I just need, well, closure I suppose. Could I come over, maybe tomorrow? I just need to talk some things through. Get back to me whenever is comfortable for you. _

_Yours truly,_

_Annette_

Tilting her head, Annette scrutinized each word. Innocent enough? Yes. Too forward for a recent breakup? No. Perfect? Of course.

Grinning, she hit send and then closed her laptop. She stood from her desk and walked to her closet. What to wear, what to wear? So many decisions. Annette wrinkled her nose at the pastels that hung in an orderly fashion in front of her. Pushing her arms through the very middle, she pushed the clothes out of her way to reveal a darker, more cluttered part of her closet. In this section was half of her life savings, in the form of dark, expensive designer clothes. It was expensive to dress like Kathryn, that was for sure.

Lifting garment after garment, Annette smiled at each one, remembering when she had seen Kathryn in this Armani skirt/suit, or those dark slacks with the light flair at the bottom. Annette was always impressed with Kathryn's taste. She never failed to be wearing some big designer. Annette remembered when Tiffany had been having a big dinner party. Annette hadn't, of course, been invited, but that didn't stop her from driving by, pausing long enough to see Kathryn at the door, greeting people without any sign of discomfort, wearing what was undoubtedly a long black Vera Wang dress. Now there was something Annette could not afford, not without robbing a bank. Which would ruin any reputation she might have been able to build up.

Slut was not what she wanted to be called. Who called Kathryn a slut? No one. So no one would call Annette a slut. No adult would doubt her. Because that was part of Kathryn's charm. The parent's love her. The girls—the ones who were on her good side—love her. The guys worshipped her. If there was ever a girl to idolize, it was Kathryn.

Surveying her room, she hoped it didn't show any signs of the night before. This new attitude that she was forming was truly new. She had almost believed all that bullshit she had spewed to the reporter about waiting until she was married. Almost. And it wasn't _all_ bull. She was telling the truth when she said that she had never had sex before. And she was waiting. Just not waiting until marriage. More or less, she was waiting for the right guy. The one who would think he was doing something huge, when she would have given it up long before marriage.

In a way, Sebastian had won. He was the first. He had let out all of that pent up sexual desire. Unfortunately for her next unsuspecting victim, that well of need was already growing strong. Last night was enough to tell her that it was too good an act to miss out on for the next years of her life.

Annette wondered about that journal Sebastian had carried with him. What did he write about? Annette had to only rack her mind for a near 30 seconds before it was obvious. His conquests. What else was there? His life was centered around them. That and his sister. Annette frowned at this. Her goal was to be a heartbreaker. But she couldn't accomplish this goal if her first target wasn't even in love with her. She'd have to fix that to truly break a heart. She grinned.

If it was a bad side Sebastian wanted, it was a bad side he would get.

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

So that's it! My probably sad attempt at writing CI. What did you think?

And of course, in return to a previous dedication, I dedicate this to Katie because I love her. And cause she got me into CI in the first place. And she pretty much threatened to cut off my head if I even pretended to support A/S. And she's awesome. Must I go on?


End file.
